Let’s not bog this down with words. Here’s Hillary Clinton’s new ad:

And here’s Barack Obama’s response:

The headlines make it sound like a scandal: “Audit finds prison receiver paid himself $52,000 a month,” “Spending by prison care overseer questioned,” “Audit pans prison receiver spending.” Even the milder ones — “Ex-prison healthcare receiver’s staff was well paid” — seem to imply shadyness.

But after taking a look at the Inspector General’s report on how the California Prison Health Care Receivership was spending its money, I’m still a little puzzled as to what the big deal is.

Was receiver Robert Sillen well-paid? Damn straight he was, and that salary was set by the man who appointed him, Senior U.S. District Judge Thelton Henderson — not by Sillen himself. Sillen had run the massive Santa Clara Valley Health and Hospital System or its forerunner since 1979. He was tremendously well respected among his peers, and Henderson paid what it took to get the right guy for the job.

Were his staffers well-paid? Absolutely, compared to state bureaucrats and even elected officials. But those salaries, like Sillen’s, were directly comparable to what these people — many of them medical professionals with advanced degrees — would earn at equivalent positions in a large health-care system. Part of the reason the prison healthcare system had gone down the tubes in the first place was because it offered abyssmally low salaries and so couldn’t attract and retain enough workers and managers with adequate expertise.

Furthermore, despite today’s breathless headlines, all these salaries were approved by Henderson and were in the public record, widely known and fully reported from the get-go. Sillen in his first bi-monthly report to Henderson, back in July 2006, had estimated the receivership’s salaries would cost $4.6 million in FY 2006-07; the new OIG report finds salaries totaled about $4.89 million for a longer period, April 2006 through June 2007.

The report notes that executive staffers received cash-in-lieu payments to cover their healthcare expenses, and that staffers kept receiving such payments even after they were covered by the receivership’s employee benefit plan. Actually, what they continued to receive was the difference between the cash-in-lieu they had been getting and the value of the benefits for which they’d enrolled — exactly what their court-approved contracts called for, nothing more and nothing less. And even so, Henderson had stopped those payments well before Sillen’s departure and this report.

Some of the stories about the report make a big deal about travel expenses lacking receipts. From the report:

In our sample of lodging expenses, we found that the receivership had failed to require staff members to provide proper support before paying $10,500 in lodging expenses. Therefore, we could not determine whether the charges were appropriate. Similarly, in our limited review of 23 travel-related expenses, we found 11 instances of meal charges that exceeded the receivership’s policy limit or lacked the proper documentation. These expense claims totaled $1,800.

I’m all in favor of government officials keeping proper receipts for their spending, but we’re talking about around $12,000 here — hardly to blame for the state’s $16 billion deficit, I’d say. And don’t assume that spending was improper, either: the report clearly states the audit found no evidence of fraud.

Some stories noted this sentence from the OIG report: “For example, the receiver, Robert Sillen, claimed a February 2007 meal expense of $740 from a Sacramento steakhouse and provided no original receipt, business purpose, or listing of other business guests joining him at the meal.”

But I’m told this tab was for almost three dozen receivership staffers who dined midway through a two-day working retreat — hardly an exorbitant tab for that many people called away from their families for an overnight work engagement.

Honestly, as I read certain state officials’ quotes in today’s stories, I’m reminded that a receivership wouldn’t have been necessary in the first place if the state hadn’t failed so miserably at maintaining minimum standards of care in the prisons, or at correcting those errors once it had lost a massive lawsuit.

What strikes me most about this report and the articles it generates is the political expediency of its timing.

Sillen generally was known as a straight shooter unafraid to steamroll the state’s elected officials and entrenched bureaucracy and to spend whatever it took to bring the prison health-care system up to constitutional snuff — precisely his mandate from Henderson. This indubitably rubbed a lot of people in Sacramento the wrong way, and I must wonder what sort of communications — what sort of pressure — was brought to bear on Henderson in the weeks leading up to Sillen’s dismissal Jan. 23.

“While the current Receiver has successfully used his unique skills and bold, creative leadership style to investigate, confront, and break down many of the barriers that existed at the inception of the Receivership, the second phase of the Receivership demands a substantially different set of administrative skills and style of collaborative leadership,” Henderson wrote in his order axing Sillen.

Fair enough. But perhaps he also knew spending whatever it takes to improve prison health care was no longer palatable to the public in the face of the state’s staggering budget deficit. Or perhaps he just wanted to speed up the process; Henderson has said repeatedly he would like to retire, but not while this receivership is still in progress. We’ll probably never know the whole story.

Sillen’s replacement is J. Clark Kelso, a Sacramento law professor with a reputation as a “fixer” capable of cleaning up government messes quickly and efficiently; he was tapped to lead the state Insurance Department after Commissioner Chuck Quackenbush resigned amid scandal in 2000, and later was chosen as California’s Chief Information Officer in order to whip a dysfunctional state IT operation into shape.

I hear Kelso’s first act was to tell receivership staffers that instead of Sillen’s long view — a decade-long plan to build a culture of constitutionally adequate health care — the new goal would be to do it fast and cheap, and return control to the state within four years. Many of those staffers were subsequently pushed out the door.

This report gave Kelso an opportunity to explain the cuts and changes he has made already, and that’s fine. But while we’re discussing all of this information we already knew, we don’t seem to be hearing anything yet about what’s being done now and in coming months to improve prison health care.

Sillen had increased pay for prison doctors; overhauled the awful prison pharmacy system; completely renovated San Quentin’s emergency room as a pilot project for other prisons; and far more. Let’s hope Kelso has similar goals in mind — not just cutting office costs — because that’s what it’ll take to meet California’s legal and moral obligations in prison helath care. Let’s hope this report and the spin that’s being put on it aren’t a smokescreen for a u-turn away from real progress.

The House today voted 236-182 to pass the Renewable Energy and Energy Conservation Tax Act of 2008, which would — among other things — end tax subsidies to Big Oil and invest that money instead in clean, renewable energy and energy efficiency.

House Minority Leader John Boehner, R-Ohio, said it “will only make matters worse by raising taxes and setting the table for even higher prices at the pump,” which is both “unacceptable” and “irresponsible.”

Don Young, the House Natural Resources Committee’s ranking Republican, said it’s “a true indication of how out of touch they (Democrats) are with the needs of our nation… It makes no sense whatsoever.”

And Jim McCrery, the Ways and Means Committee’s ranking Republican, said it “completely ignores reality” and “will make our economy more dependent on foreign sources of energy… This is worse than no solution at all.”

Here’s what their fellow Republican California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger had to say:

I commend Speaker Nancy Pelosi and members of Congress who worked hard to pass this critical legislation that will allow us to continue investing in our nation’s renewable energy supplies – we need as much clean energy in our resource mix as possible. With our aggressive environmental goals, unprecedented energy portfolio standards and booming ‘green economy,’ California has a vital stake in legislation to be passed by Congress and approved by President Bush.

A long-term solar tax credit is critical because of the time needed to bid, permit, engineer and build solar projects. Today’s action will help California in its efforts to reduce carbon emissions and our dependence on imported fuel sources. I urge the U.S. Senate and the President to quickly pass this legislation.

Wow, this sounds a lot like saying that, “At a time when our economy is struggling, this bill will provide savings to consumers, protect the environment, create jobs and make our nation stronger by ending our dependence on foreign oil.” Or, that “(e)nding our dependence on foreign oil and using renewable energy to help fight global warming will make our nation stronger.” Or, that the bill will “put us on a path toward energy security and energy independence in a fiscally responsible way.”

But those latter words of praise came from Democrats — House Education and Labor Committee Chairman George Miller, D-Martinez; Rep. Jerry McNerney, D-Pleasanton; and Hosue Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-San Francisco, respectively.

Sacramento reporters have been complaining for some time about a lack of Internet access in the state Capitol.

Steve Geissinger — the Capitol Correspondents Association of California’s president and a reporter for this newspaper — said perhaps the state and the CCAC, through fundraising, could forge a 50-50 deal so the deficit-plagued state doesn’t bear the whole cost of providing adequate Internet access for reporting on things such as — well, the deficit.

At least one lawmaker reportedly agrees and has been talking with the CCAC about a deal, although this person asked not to be identified before an agreement is reached.

Follow us after the jump for a letter the CCAC sent to state officials yesterday, including some comparisons that show just how far the supposedly high-tech Golden State has fallen behind… Read the rest of this entry »

This from CQPolitics:

Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Stephen Johnson was urged by his staff to allow California to set greenhouse gas emission standards for vehicles, even though he ultimately decided to block the regulations, according to documents obtained by the chairwoman of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee.

Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif., said she plans to grill Johnson about his decision at a hearing Wednesday on the EPA’s proposed fiscal 2009 budget.

“The people in the agency who were charged with advising administrator Johnson were very, very clear that this waiver should be signed,” Boxer said.

Johnson announced late last year that he would not grant a waiver to allow California to implement a state-level global warming program. California’s regulations would set fuel economy standards for vehicles stricter than those in force at the federal level. Numerous other states have indicated they would adopt identical regulations if California were allowed to move forward.

Boxer has introduced legislation to require the EPA to allow the state emission standards. She plans to move the bill if she can obtain 60 votes to overcome a filibuster on the floor. States have also filed a lawsuit against the EPA.

In the meantime, Boxer is requesting documents from the agency on the background behind Johnson’s decision. One presentation from October is a strong recommendation from EPA staff that the waiver should be granted. The document was prepared by Christopher Grundler, deputy director at the Office of Transportation and Air Quality.

Under the Clean Air Act, the EPA must allow California to set its own pollution standards for vehicles unless the state standards are found to be arbitrary and capricious, are unnecessary to meet “compelling and extraordinary” environmental conditions, or are otherwise inconsistent with the federal anti-pollution law.

As a compromise, the staffer suggested the EPA could grant the waiver for three years and then defer it for subsequent years. This was described as a “grand bargain” that would put the EPA “in the driver’s seat to craft a national solution.”

Boxer says the documents, excerpted on her committee’s Web site, “paint a picture of an Environmental Protection Agency in crisis. They show the dedicated professional staff of the EPA working hard to do what they are paid to do by the American people — protect our health and our environment. At the same time, we see more and more evidence of Administrator Johnson ignoring the science and the facts, and discarding the advice of his professional staff.

“I believe this decision will be reversed by the next President or by the courts, but the Administrator can save the taxpayers time and money, and can get us started cleaning up our air if he would simply follow the law, the facts, and the advice of his agency professionals.”

Here’s a video of her news conference:

Are we looking forward to hearing this testimony tomorrow? Oh yes, yes we are.

I got an e-mail yesterday from Brent G. Maupin, a former Hayward-area resident (1980-93, with both his kids born in Castro Valley) who is now an independent candidate for Congress in Arizona’s First Congressional District — where incumbent Rep. Rick Renzi has just been indicted by a federal grand jury on 35 counts of conspiracy, fraud, money laundering and extortion related to his involvement in a land-swap deal. Renzi already had said last year that this would be his final term, but even after being indicted this week, he said he won’t resign.

“Enough is enough! Now is the time for America to vote out every elected official who does not call for reforms that overthrow the political system as we now know it!,” Maupin says in a release he attached to his brief e-mail.

In the race since last fall, Maupin says neither the Republican Party nor the Democratic Party serves the needs of the American people: “The system is broken and only the citizens of America can fix it. I have no party affiliation and only the best interests of Arizona and America at heart.”

Maupin has lived in Sedona, Ariz., since leaving the Bay Area 15 years ago, and describes himself as “a respected businessman, a licensed Civil Engineer, a licensed Architect and a licensed contractor” not to mention a musician and a cancer survivor. “I balance my checkbook every month and there is no reason why Congress can not do the same. As an engineer I am trained to find solutions, not ‘litigate to legislate’ as we see in Washington D.C.”

Among the reforms Maupin seeks are full public disclosure of the Congressional committee selection process; reducing special-interest groups’ influence; replacing paid television ads with televised forums and debates; and forced resignation, loss of pension and healthcare benefits and mandatory prison time for any member of Congress “that has not lived up to his or her oath of office or has otherwise been proven to have been gravely unethical in the administration of his or her duties,” as his release puts it. He also wants all Congressional earmarks voted upon line-by-line before they’re sent to the President.

That’s all he sent me, but I did some snooping. His campaign Web site includes his latest song, “Stand Up America:”

And his music Web site says:

The motivation behind my music is driven by the fact that I believe it is my destiny, and that of several other millions of Americans, to implement what I call The Second American Revolution. In doing so, I intend to “overthrow the legal and illegal corruption” within the current political structure of the government of the United States of America. For a more detailed explanation on my political stand see my web site at www.winwithmaupin.com. This political revolution will be achieved, of course, without advocating force or violence of any kind. I intend to achieve this by continuing to transform my own life, and more importantly to live my life based on the absolute highest levels of my own personal integrity. Also, as can be seen in my web site www.winwithmaupin.com, I am running for office for the United States House of Representatives and when elected I will bring this level of integrity into the governing system. I believe this will in turn have a domino effect of bringing the same for all who run for office. In short, I intend to co-create with God, or this omnipotent-omnipresent force that exists within the universe, a government whereby those who desire to run for office will be those who will live to the absolute highest levels of their own personal integrity and run their campaigns and political responsibilities accordingly. It is through the personal transformational process that such intentions are manifested into reality.

His campaign Web site also notes his vow to spend 70 percent less on his campaign than the $2.2 million Renzi spent to get re-elected in 2006. Sticking to that limit shouldn’t be a problem; FEC reports show that as of Dec. 31, Maupin had raised $739 and spent $669, leaving his campaign $70 cash on hand. (And of that $739, he put up $669 and one other person gave him $70.)

That’s gonna be quite a race down there, whether or not Maupin’s call for revolution catches on. Among the possible Democratic contenders are a state representative; the mayor of Winslow; an Apache magazine publisher; a former U.S. House staffer; a prominent attorney; and a part-time cabbie who was a GLBT coordinator for Dennis Kucinich’s campaign. The GOP contenders include the Arizona Mining Corporation’s president and a computer programmer, and a state representative who dropped out of the race but might be considering jumping back in.

American Solutions for Winning the Future — a new, allegedly nonpartisan group chaired by former House Speaker Newt Gingrich with the goals of defending America and its allies abroad and defeating our enemies, strengthening and revitalizing America’s core values, and moving the government into the 21st Century — announced today that it will open a Silicon Valley office in Palo Alto.

See Gingrich’s announcement video here:

“We’re excited to be in Silicon Valley and to learn from the best of the private sector so we can utilize the latest technological breakthroughs to fundamentally transform government from the world that fails to the world that works,” Gingrich said in a news release. “We believe it’s possible to create a world that works and to move the bureaucracies of the past - obsolete, slow, cumbersome, paper-based institutions - into a very dynamic, networked, information technology future.”

David Kralik, American Solutions’ internet strategy director and Silicon Valley office manager, said the office “will be looking to work with the innovative and entrepreneurial people located in Silicon Valley to establish ourselves as a leader in online politics and serve as a model for successful online political efforts. We want to engage in a dialogue with technology leaders and to communicate a message of free market principles where consumers decide who wins and not the government.” Kralik is a former Gingrich aide who started the Draft Newt movement for this year’s presidential election; I see that Wonkette IDed Kralik back in ‘06 as a blogger for the National Association of Manufacturers.

American Solutions, its release says, is committed to utilizing the latest technology to connect elected officials at all levels and millions of activists to form a diverse, decentralized, collaborative network that will aggregate the best ideas and solutions to move government into the 21st century. It cites as an example Gingrich’s Sept. 27 appearance in the virtual world of Second Life.

Virtual Newt!

Though Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger was on the East Coast for the National Governors Association meeting this weekend, he was at the Oscars in spirit Sunday night — along with a slew of other stars past and present. Wait for it… waaaiiittt for iiiiitttt…

Previous SVOTWs: February 19, February 12, February 5, January 29, January 22, January 15, January 8, January 1, December 25, December 18, December 11, December 4, November 27, November 20, November 13, November 6, October 30, October 23, October 16, October 9, October 2, September 25, September 18, September 11, September 4, August 28, August 21, August 7, July 31, July 24, July 17, July 10, July 3, June 26, June 19, June 12, June 5, May 29, May 22, May 15, May 8, May 1, April 24, April 17, April 10, April 3, March 27, March 20, March 13, March 6, February 27, February 20, February 13, February 6, January 30.

From the New York Times today, describing how Hillary Clinton’s campaign is pouring personnel and resources into the “firewall” states of Ohio and Texas:

In Texas, it means working the Rio Grande Valley to maximize her margin among Hispanics.

She is deploying the same organizing ace — named Ace Smith, as it happens — who oversaw her nine-point victory in California. There, by two to one, she dominated a Latino constituency that outpaced pre-election estimates by amounting to 30 percent of the voters.

In Texas, both campaigns say, the Hispanic vote could reach 40 percent of the turnout. Capitalizing on early voting procedures tied to satellite polling locations rather than mail-in ballots, Mr. Smith sees dividends already, with early South Texas turnout exceeding that in the Obama strongholds of Austin and Houston.

Mr. Smith minimizes the importance of Mr. Obama’s financial superiority in television advertising and direct mail, since Mrs. Clinton is already universally known. More significant, he argues, is her campaign’s commitment to compete with Mr. Obama in Texas caucuses far more earnestly than in past caucus fights. Those caucuses occur the same day as the primary and will select about one-third of the state’s convention delegates.

“We’re going to be highly organized,” Mr. Smith said, “and every bit as aggressive as the Obama people.”

Ace Smith, you’ll recall, is a Bay Area-based strategist with scads of campaigns under his belt, most recently Jerry Brown’s run for Attorney General in 2006.

The Times didn’t mention that Luis Vizcaino, after serving as Clinton’s California communications director, is now among her message men in Ohio.

Stanford Law Professor Lawrence Lessig, a crusader for online freedoms who is turning his attention to political corruption, has decided not to run for the 12th Congressional District seat left vacant by the death of Rep. Tom Lantos, D-San Mateo.

From his blog:

With lots of mixed feelings, I have decided a run for Congress would not help the Change Congress movement. I explain the thinking in this 5 minute video (a new record for me!). First question: What happens to the contributions to Lessig08? As explained on the ActBlue page, all will go to (the yet to be established) Change Congress organization.

Thanks to everyone who helped me make this decision — and especially the many friends in the harshest way told me it would be a mistake.

So, say hello to Congresswoman Jackie Speier!